Population I Cepheids and star formation history of the Large Magellanic Cloud

In this paper we study the Cepheids distribution in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) as a function of their ages using data from the OGLE III photometric catalogue. To determine age of the Pop I Cepheids, we derived a period-age (PA) relationship using the Cepheids found in the LMC star clusters. We find two peaks in the period distribution at logP =0.49+/-0.01 and logP =0.28+/-0.01 days which correspond to fundamental and first overtone pulsation modes, respectively. Ages of the Cepheids are used to understand star formation scenario in the LMC in last 30-600 Myr. The age distribution of the LMC Cepheids is found to have a peak at log(Age)=8.2+/-0.1. This suggests that major star formation event took place at about 125-200 Myr ago which may have been triggered by a close encounter between the SMC and the LMC. Cepheids are found to be asymmetrically distributed throughout the LMC and many of them lie in clumpy structures along the bar. The frequency distribution of Cepheids suggests that most of the clumps are located to the eastern side of the LMC optical center.Comment: 2014, New Astronomy, 28, 2

Asteroseismology of Pulsating Stars

The success of helioseismology is due to its capability of measuring p-mode oscillations in the Sun. This allows us to extract informations on the internal structure and rotation of the Sun from the surface to the core. Similarly, asteroseismology is the study of the internal structure of the stars as derived from stellar oscillations. In this review we highlight the progress in the observational asteroseismology, including some basic theoretical aspects. In particular, we discuss our contributions to asteroseismology through the study of chemically peculiar stars under the "Nainital-Cape Survey" project being conducted at ARIES, Nainital since 1999. This survey aims to detect new rapidly-pulsating Ap (roAp) stars in the northern hemisphere. We also discuss the contribution of ARIES towards the asteroseismic study of the compact pulsating variables. We comment on the future prospects of our project in the light of the new optical 3.6-m telescope to be install at Devasthal (ARIES). Finally, we present a preliminary optical design of the high-speed imaging photometers for this telescope.Comment: published in Journal of Astrophysics & Astronomy. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1405.3145, arXiv:1212.5084, arXiv:1205.6407, arXiv:1212.2384, arXiv:1109.3455, arXiv:1104.5191, arXiv:1102.1884, arXiv:1310.0696, arXiv:1310.2266 by other author

Long Time Response of Aging Glassy Polymers

Aging amorphous polymeric materials undergo free volume relaxation, which causes slowing down of the relaxation dynamics as a function of time. The resulting time dependency poses difficulties in predicting their long time physical behavior. In this work, we apply effective time domain approach to the experimental data on aging amorphous polymers and demonstrate that it enables prediction of long time behavior over the extraordinary time scales. We demonstrate that, unlike the conventional methods, the proposed effective time domain approach can account for physical aging that occurs over the duration of the experiments. Furthermore, this procedure successfully describes time temperature superposition and time stress superposition. It can also allow incorporation of varying dependences of relaxation time on aging time as well as complicated but known deformation history in the same experiments. This work strongly suggests that the effective time domain approach can act as an important tool to analyze the long time physical behavior of aging amorphous polymeric materials. Aging amorphous polymeric materials undergo free volume relaxation, which causes slowing down of the relaxation dynamics as a function of time. The resulting time dependency poses difficulties in predicting their long time physical behavior. In this work, we apply effective time domain approach to the experimental data on aging amorphous polymers and demonstrate that it enables prediction of long time behavior over the extraordinary time scales. We demonstrate that, unlike the conventional methods, the proposed effective time domain approach can account for physical aging that occurs over the duration of the experiments. Furthermore, this procedure successfully describes time temperature superposition and time stress superposition.Comment: 39 pages, 11 figure

A model for cage formation in colloidal suspension of laponite

In this paper we investigate glass transition in aqueous suspension of synthetic hectorite clay, laponite. We believe that upon dispersing laponite clay in water, system comprises of clusters (agglomerates) of laponite dispersed in the same. Subsequent osmotic swelling of these clusters leads to increase in their volume fraction. We propose that this phenomenon is responsible for slowing down of the overall dynamics of the system. As clusters fill up the space, system undergoes glass transition. Along with the mode coupling theory, proposed mechanism rightly captures various characteristic features of the system in the ergodic regime as it approaches glass transition.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figures. The Journal of Chemical Physics, in pres

Probing nearby Galactic structure through open star clusters

Based on the most complete sample of Galactic open star clusters up to 1.8 kpc, we performed statistical analysis of the distribution of open cluster parameters in order to understand the Galactic structure. The geometrical characteristics of a large number of open clusters enable us to determine solar offset and scale height and distribution of reddening material in the Galactic neighbourhood.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, conference proceedings Stars: From Collapse to Collapse, Proceedings of a conference held at Special Astrophysical Observatory, Nizhny Arkhyz, Russia 3-7 October 2016. Edited by Yu. Yu. Balega, D. O. Kudryavtsev, I. I. Romanyuk, and I. A. Yakunin. San Francisco: Astronomical Society of the Pacific, 2017, p.8

Strange Attractors for Asymptotically Zero Maps

A discrete dynamical system in Euclidean m-space generated by the iterates of an asymptotically zero map f, satisfying f(x) goes to zero as x goes to infinity, must have a compact global attracting set $A$. The question of what additional hypotheses are sufficient to guarantee that A has a minimal (invariant) subset A* that is a chaotic strange attractor is answered in detail for a few types of asymptotically zero maps. These special cases happen to have many applications (especially as mathematical models for a variety of processes in ecological and population dynamics), some of which are presented as examples and analyzed in considerable detail.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figures, reported on in a special session on difference equations at the AMS meeting at Temple University, Oct. 11, 1

Population I Cepheids and understanding star formation history of the Small Magellanic Cloud

In this paper, we study the age and spatial distributions of Cepheids in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) as a function of their ages using the data from the OGLE III photometric catalogue. A period-age (PA) relation derived for the Classical Cepheids in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has been used to find the ages of Cepheids. The age distribution of the SMC Classical Cepheids is found to have a peak at log(Age) = 8.40+/-0.10 which suggests that a major star formation event might have occurred in the SMC at about 250+/-50 Myrs ago. It is believed that this star forming burst had been triggered by close interactions of the SMC with the LMC and/or the Milky Way (MW). A comparison of the observed spatial distributions of the Cepheids and open star clusters has also been carried out to study the star formation scenario in the SMC.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, accepted for publication in Research in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Photometric studies of two W UMa type variables in the field of distant open cluster NGC6866

We present photometric analysis of the two W UMa type binaries identified in the field of distant open star cluster NGC6866. Although these systems, namely ID487 and ID494, were reported in the Joshi et al. (2012), but a detailed study of these stars has not been carried out earlier. The orbital periods of these stars are found to be 0.415110+/-0.000001 day and 0.366709+/-0.000004 day, respectively. Based on the photometric and infrared colours, we find their respective spectral types as K0 and K3. The photometric light variations of both the stars show O'Connell effect which could be explained by employing a dark spot on the secondary components. The V and I bands light curves are analyzed using the Wilson-Devinney (WD) code and relations given by Gazeas (2009) which yield radii and mass of the primary and secondary components of the star ID487 as R1 = 1.24+/-0.01 Rsun, R2 = 1.11+/-0.02 Rsun, and M1 = 1.24+/-0.02 Msun, M2 = 0.96+/-0.05 Msun, and for the star ID494 as R1 = 1.22+/-0.02 Rsun, R2 = 0.81+/-0.01 Rsun, and M1 = 1.20+/-0.06 Msun, M2 = 0.47+/-0.01 Msun.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures, 2016, RAA, 16, 1

Long-term photometric study of a faint W UMa binary in the direction of M31

We carry out a re-analysis of the photometric data in Cousin RI bands which was taken under the Nainital Microlensing Survey during 1998 to 2002 with the aim to detect gravitational microlensing events in the direction of M31. Here, we do photometric analysis of a faint W UMa binary CSS_J004259.3+410629 identified in the target field. The orbital period of this star is found to be 0.266402+/-0.000018 day. The photometric mass ratio, q, is found to be 0.28+/-0.01. The photometric light curves are investigated using the Wilson-Devinney code and absolute parameters are determined using empirical relations which provide masses and radii of the binary as M1 = 1.19+/-0.09 Msun, M2 = 0.33+/-0.02 Msun and R1 = 1.02+/-0.04 Rsun, R2 = 0.58+/-0.08 Rsun based on the Rc band data. Almost similar values are found by analysing Ic band data. From the photometric light curve examination, the star is understood to be a low mass-ratio over-contact binary of A-subtype with a high fill-out factor of about 47%. The binary system is found to be located approximately at a distance of 2.64+/-0.03 kpc having a separation of 2.01+/-0.05 Rsun between the two components.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures, 4 tables, accepted for publication in Research in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Physicochemical Effects in Aging Aqueous Laponite Suspensions

We study aging behavior of aqueous suspension of Laponite as a function of concentration of Laponite, concentration of salt, time elapsed since preparation of suspension (idle time) and temperature by carrying extensive rheological and conductivity experiments. We observe that temporal evolution of elastic modulus, which describes structural buildup and aging, shifts to low times for experiments carried out for higher concentration of Laponite, higher concentration of salt, greater temperature and on higher idle time while preserving the curvature of evolution in the solid regime. Consequently appropriate shifting of evolution of elastic modulus in the solid regime leads to aging time idle time salt concentration Laponite concentration temperature superposition. Existence of such superposition suggests generic nature of microstructure buildup irrespective of mentioned variables in the explored range. Behavior of shift factors needed to obtain the superposition indicate that energy barrier associated with structural buildup decreases with increase in idle time and temperature; and decreases linearly with increase in concentration of Laponite and that of salt. The conductivity experiments show that ionic conductivity of the suspension increases with increasing Laponite concentration, salt concentration, temperature and very importantly the idle time. We also analyze the interparticle interactions using DLVO theory that suggests increase in idle time, temperature and salt concentration increases height of repulsive energy barrier while decreases width of the same when particles approach each other in a parallel fashion. Analysis of rheological and conductivity experiments suggest strong influence of attractive interactions on the low energy structures in aqueous suspension of Laponite.Comment: 48 pages, 19 figure